Chris Neumann has lived in the village of McLean in southwestern McLean County for 20 years. He and his family took a cross country road trip last summer. He recalls driving past many small towns along Route 66. Their landmarks of tall grain bins and water towers filled him with nostalgia.
“Being off the beaten path, a lot of (smaller communities) aren’t as significant as they used to be, but it’s bringing back that small-town feel when you see stuff like this,” Neumann said. “These towns may have served a bigger purpose and these smaller towns are shrinking when you’ve got big cities around them.”
Neumann says he also filled with pride because the old water tower in his hometown was still standing strong. That tower built in the Great Depression was decommissioned several years ago when a new tower was installed.
Not everyone feels the way Neuman does. Some think it's an eyesore.
“I can understand people looking at it right now and saying why don’t you take that thing down,” said Katie Funk, president of CORE of McLean, the nonprofit focused on revitalizing the community of about 750 residents. “I think if we are allowed to beautify it and restore it, I can’t imagine many people would say that anymore.”
Water towers are the skyscrapers of many smaller communities that dot the countryside. The issue here is whether these structures have value when they are no longer in use.
CORE McLean has been trying for years to come up with ways to beautify the rusty tower and the area around it. They built a park at the site four years ago. It features a seating area, bike rack, native plants and paver bricks dedicated to family members.
The group said it has available funds to paint a mural on the tower. but that it is seeking grant funding for a Route 66-themed design. They want to fundraise money to paint the tower legs. Leaders with CORE stressed they have the money necessary for those projects, but noted its money is also used on other community projects.
Katie Funk and CORE McLean presented their plans to the McLean Village Board last week. That same meeting, the board voted to remove the tower. The village will pay nearly $34,000 to have it moved to Tazewell County.
Funk says the village board in McLean has always been supportive of the nonprofit, but she was felt the village didn't give the group a fair chance in this instance, when the volunteers were willing to do all the work on their own dime.
“It has been pretty disappointing for us to have this happen,” Funk said.
Neumann also volunteers with CORE McLean. He says the village board told them they got a good deal to remove the tower and it would likely cost them more in the future.
“Essentially it was the fact that they are thinking it’s a lower cost since someone is interested in it. It’s a lower cost than if it had to come down in the future. They would be saving money,” Neumann said.
Neumann and CORE don't think the village need to move the water tower anytime soon. The group commissioned a report which says the tower is structurally sound and has a "conservative estimated life expectancy of 50 years or more."
The village board vote to remove the tower was 4-2. None of the board members who voted to remove the tower responded to a WGLT request for an interview.
Board member John Wille voted against the tower removal. He says CORE McLean was working in good faith to save the tower and turn it into a community asset.
“They’ve done a phenomenal job (with) the little park underneath the water tower. You remove the water tower, it kind of defeats the purpose of what they’ve built there,” Wille said. “It’s not doing anything. (The tower) is not harming anybody.”
Wille wants the village board to reconsider its vote. It's up for discussion at a special meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Mount Hope Funks Grove Park District building, but no vote is scheduled.
Wille says the tower has become the talk of the town.
“The public outpouring of support for this water tower has grown a lot in the past week and I think we need to listen to our constituents,” Wille said.
Funk says with preservation she believes the tower can be a tourist attraction.
She says the board told the group when it built the park a few years ago it had no plans to get rid of the tower. Now that removal appears imminent, Funk says she wishes McLean residents had more of a say.
“We didn’t realize how quickly they would act on it and that has become our main concern. The residents of the village weren’t really given the opportunity to have input and say whether they want it taken down or not,” Funk said.
Funk says CORE McLean County has yard signs posted around the village that say “Save the Water Tower, Protect McLean's history.” The group has started a petition drive and it is considering an application to get the tower designated a historic landmark. The status would keep the tower where it stands.
